In the heart of Kyiv, where creativity flourishes amidst a backdrop of culture and resilience, GORN Ceramics emerges as a beacon of artistic collaboration. Founded in 2018 by visionary creative director Bogdan Kryvosheya and talented artist-ceramist Yuriy Myrko, GORN Ceramics synthesises the rich traditions of Ukrainian craftsmanship with an innovative approach to design and art.
In these insightful interviews, we delve into the minds of Kryvosheya and Myrko, exploring the artistic journeys that shaped them, the challenges they faced, and the profound philosophies that guide their work. From the intricacies of clay to the overarching quest for beauty and meaning, their stories reveal a deep commitment to reimagining ceramics as more than mere decor, transforming it into a vital expression of cultural identity and creative exploration. Join us as we navigate their experiences, inspirations, and visions for the future of Ukrainian art.
Follow gornceramics.com/en / @yuriymyrko / @gornceramics
An interview by Sofia Tchkonia @sofiatchkonia / www.sofiatchkonia.com
All photos by Sasha Mazur @mazur_sasha
Bogdan Kryvosheya – Gorn Ceramics
Bogdan: I am Bogdan Kryvosheya, a creative director who implements unconventional ideas in the field of design, decor, and art.
S: How was your childhood, and where did you spend it?
B: It’s an interesting question. In general, I grew up in Kyiv. I was born in Kyiv in 1994, in independent Ukraine at that time. I spent my childhood in Kyiv. I am a native of Kyiv and have lived my entire life in Kyiv until I was fifteen. After fifteen, I went to study abroad, to England, London. I studied there until 2015, after that I came back to Ukraine. I thought about going somewhere else. But Kyiv absorbed me, and my soul wanted to stay here.
S: And why did you stay here specifically? What was the reason?
B: At that time, I was very interested in music, and I wanted to develop specifically in the music field. In that period, I didn’t even think about what I am doing now. And it happened that in those years, the boom of electronic music and culture began in Ukraine, especially after the 2014 revolution. Strangely enough, there was a certain rise in culture, including music. And at that time, when I returned, there were many opportunities here. Not in the meaning of money, orders or projects. But there was just this cool spirit, the beginning of something interesting and cool. And I wanted to be part of it. And together with my friends, guys who also, by the way, were not Ukrainian, but came from abroad. One of them was because of some project work, another one came as a tourist. We started our music organisation and began to organise parties. My partner was Indian, and another was Lithuanian. And I was the only Ukrainian. And we all found something here that made us stay.
Although at the beginning everyone came here for a short period of time, just to stay here, do some projects and then leave. I was also looking for a job abroad, but we decided to stay here and start organising parties organising various events. And actually, it slowly led me to the point when I started creating decorations for my events. Started getting more involved in the events.
Also, I was involved in organising festivals like Kyiv Vegan Boom. And in parallel, I realised that at that time in Ukraine, in Kyiv, there were very few contractors who could implement some unconventional cool ideas in terms of decoration. I realised that it was a free niche and I got interested. I found people and designers for my projects. And then, during this work, I, together with one designer and another partner, decided to open a workshop where we made decorations for events. And then we worked very fruitfully with Brave Factory, with Closer (Art-centre). I think many people know them, it is such a cult place of electronic music, which also opened its doors somewhere in 2014-2015, and we worked fruitfully with them. But the pandemic came, and the entire market of decorations, festivals and events froze.
And at that time, we were lucky with this workshop, and we had several interior and exterior projects, and we latched onto this direction and continued to develop it. We moved away from decorations and events, and accordingly, it led us to who we are now. That is, we create various unconventional things, mostly taking orders from different clients. These can be artists, architects, designers, or just some private individuals who have an interesting idea and want to realise it. And we help them do it with the help of our knowledge and the capabilities available at our workshop.
S: What do you think shaped you as a person? Did your education abroad help you? What impacted you the most? What made you the person you are today?
B: Well, in general, the results that you see today derive from what was laid down a long time ago. What you are doing now, those things that you create now, are the results that you get later. I am quite a versatile person. That is, I was engaged in many different things. And I think that dynamic that I have constantly developed has made me the person that I am now. And it’s that experience that I gained from different fields of activity. And it was this that helped me. It helped me become so multifunctional in terms of what I do. The fact that I lived, for example, abroad. I had to adapt to a new culture, new people, and new types of communication. And for this, I had to slightly change my vision. In Europe, the culture is completely different from here, although we are similar in certain issues, but nonetheless, our foundation is different. I mean, we have a more Soviet foundation, and there are certain social norms and principles, and they have a more Western foundation, and it differs from the Soviet one, if you look deeper.
Also, I am such a person… I had a good friend from Turkey, he used to say: “I have got a lot of hobbies, but one of my hobbies is to have more hobbies”. And I remembered it very well for myself. Because I am just such a person who is constantly looking for something new. I don’t do the same thing constantly. There are always some new things that captivate me, and I start doing something new. I understand that this is not the final business that I am doing now. And most likely,y there will be other directions that I will start to engage in. But still, I understand that this is some creative direction, and this is the direction of aesthetics. Since my childhood, I have liked beautiful things. I don’t know if it’s bad or good, but I just tried to find beauty in everything I saw. Maybe it’s because I saw many things, because I grew up in a fairly wealthy family and had the opportunity to travel abroad and see different things around the world. And I think it all made an impact on who I am now.
And later, all those adventures that happened to me, music, festivals, it’s just that experience that I took on, and how I processed it. And then those things that inspired me the most, I kept for myself. And those things that didn’t inspire me as much, I just cut off. As they say, a person is like a stone at the beginning, and life is like water. And over time, this water makes the stone smoother and removes all unnecessary things, making a crystal from the stone. I like this analogy because it explains life very well. Because a person is, conditionally speaking, such a lump of constant mistakes. And if you learn to accept those mistakes and make some correct conclusions, then you become smoother, and accordingly, it’s easier to roll, it seems to me. I don’t have such a thing that I am not open to something. I am open to many things. But over time, I clearly understand what things I don’t want to do and which ones I do want.
S: And which ones?
B: I went through a certain path when I worked and did internships in different offices. For example, I worked at the EBRD, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. I went through the fact that I had to wear a suit, sit in the office and do things that I couldn’t feel. I mean, it is very good that I understood all this at that time. Not that I want to blame or offend some people who work in the office. But I am inspired by the process of creation itself. It is important for me not just to be in the process, I solve some tasks. I need to see how this task was solved in the physical world. When it happens somewhere online, or when it is, for example, just somewhere on paper, it doesn’t inspire me as much as when we brought up some idea. And we start to analyse this idea until we finally realise this idea in some physical object. And that’s exactly what inspires me. When you see that some idea was created in the real physical world, and this thing brings someone pleasure or has some function, or just as a decor closes some ugly niche, so to speak.
S: What is more important for you, the process or the result?
B: Here, balance is very important. Because focusing only on the process during various projects that I implement, and if there is no result, then it is not interesting to anyone in the end. If you are focused on the result and you don’t care about the process, then you won’t be able to continue like this. And, conditionally speaking, you will do one, two, three projects. But later, all the people you worked with will tell you that they don’t want to work with you anymore. Therefore, there should be a balance here.
First of all, there should be some synergy and clarity in the process. Who does what, and why does he do it? It is very important to constantly talk about it. And the result is also important, that is, what came out in the end. And in our field, this result must be seen by everyone: by those people who only brought the idea, by those who implemented it, as well as by those who ordered it. As I tell many of my clients, when we create an unconventional thing, it is not the same as when you order something understandable, something that you are just waiting for to come.
I explain to them that here we all sit together with them in one boat and start sailing along the river, and we do not know what the result will be. And for it to be the way we want it, successful for all parties, everyone should row in their boat in the right direction, and everyone should support each other. This is such an interaction between all the parties. It doesn’t happen that someone wants to order a sculpture and says: “I want to have a very beautiful sculpture”. If this person does not explain to us what is beautiful for him, what kind of sculpture should it be and what it is made of, if he is not involved in the approval of materials, if he does not participate in all processes, there is very little likelihood that this person will get exactly what he wants. This is if we take an order from a client. And some such clients say: “We trust your taste. We just want approximately this size, possibly made of such materials and so on. Do it as you see”. But still, it seems to me, even in this process, some intermediate results should always be discussed and approved with the customer.
S: Do you think that Ukrainian art, not only contemporary art, is underestimated in the world? And why is it so?
B: This is a very good question. I think about it very often. Why? Because I have experience, and recently, I travelled to Paris for some exhibitions in which we participated. I visited various art fairs, looked at the works there, how they are presented, and how they are made. Well, I can honestly say that the level of Ukrainian works they are not worse. The problem is very complex, very comprehensive. But I think the biggest problem is that we, the Ukrainians, have not yet learned to form values. In the West, they have learned it well. Yes, they have learned to make it valuable and desirable for people. They present their works well, and they write about them well. They have created a whole road map that everyone follows to make some object or art, or design desirable. They have institutions, they have experts, they have various magazines, curators who constantly think about how to create this value, how to make it. It may not be a very good comparison, but still a bubble that looks very beautiful and that everyone desires.
Unfortunately, we have not learned to do this yet for many objective and subjective reasons. Objectively, unfortunately, as it is, we are a young independent country, and we came out of the Soviet Union, where all this was cut at the root. And secondly, unfortunately for artists, for young creative people in Ukraine, there are very few opportunities. In the sense that if you want to create something, for example, but you don’t have enough resources for it, or you don’t have enough strength. That is, everyone lives in different conditions, and not everyone can afford to hide themselves somewhere in their workshop, in a room and just draw, create, build, and so on. Because of this, we have very few people who do this all their lives. We have a lot of these multifunctional people, and they understand that they cannot earn only from art. Therefore, they need to do something in parallel, to work in a restaurant, or to do other side jobs.
And all this distracts from their creative achievements. And this is a big problem. How to overcome this? It is also a big topic for discussion. I think here the government itself should create some initiatives. These initiatives should come from some private institutions, from abroad, and so on. But at the moment, now, it’s not the best time. The country is at war, and thinking about art is probably not the most suitable now. But one very interesting philosopher made a very interesting metaphor. He said that Ukraine is like a woman who is now giving birth to a child. And now everyone is thinking about the mother. How to save the mother? But only a few people think about the child. And I think in our society, many people should realise that one of the most important things we are all fighting for is culture. And this culture is formed on art, on poetry, on various museums, galleries, on how design, art, decor and business of Ukraine is presented abroad. And if we don’t care about all this now, don’t think about it, then this child may either not be born at all or may go the wrong way.
Therefore, there should be a synergy and balance between caring for the mother, for Ukraine, and supporting her as much as possible so that we get victory and become an independent country. And also, we should directly take care of or at least create some conditions, so that the child who is born after the victory has the opportunity to become the right child and a good person. Therefore, I say this is a very complex issue.
S: At the same time, after a full-scale war began, many people, not only abroad, discovered Ukraine and Ukrainians from another perspective. What did you discover in your country and your people? Maybe there was something that didn’t catch your attention before? Maybe you didn’t know that Ukrainians were like this?
B: Well, frankly speaking, it’s a wrong word, but I am a bit of a nationalist. I generally believe that nationalism, Ukrainian, Russian and American nationalisms are all different types of nationalism. But well, maybe a patriot, a patriot is a better word here. I have always been a patriot of my country, and I have always believed in our people. And I had the experience of traveling to different countries and had the experience of living in another country. In every society, there are bad and good people. And this is normal, this is the norm of any society.
I had the opportunity to compare these societies when I was fourteen years old. As a child, I went abroad. And already then, I understood that Ukraine has a very big potential, human potential. There are a lot of cool, creative, interesting people here whom you don’t meet so often abroad. And also, of course, when you come to cities like London, it is a concentration of many cool people. But when you ask them where they are from…it’s Africa, India, Asia, Italy…In short, it’s Europe and many different people from various countries. And as a rule, such big capitals, they concentrate just a large number of cool people who could afford and reach the level to come to the capital and create something there. Of course, many English people from London are native, and so on. But still, this whole concentration, which is created in such big places, is due to those people who came from different parts of the world.
There is no such thing in Kyiv. But, despite this, the concentration of such people is still large. Well, I don’t know, maybe it happened in my life, but I have been meeting a lot of cool Ukrainians since my young years, and I meet them till today, people of different ages. Of course, I also met not very good people. I usually try to avoid them. But we have a very good potential. I have always believed in this country, and when I even went abroad to study, I thought that I wanted to come back to Ukraine at some stage. I gained some knowledge, connections, and everything else. But I wanted to come back here, these were my thoughts. I knew that whatever happened to me, my base was here.
Therefore, what happened in 2022 was not a discovery for me. I knew from the example of 2014 how people in Ukraine can unite around a problem and produce incredible results. We, our country, unfortunately, can unite this way only in critical moments. I hope that this unity can be preserved also in good times, but in critical moments, we just do our best. Even our Cossackhood itself was an anarchy, that is, anarcho-syndicalism with a certain organisational order. And often, such an order is taken as an example. Even though there was complete chaos, they managed to achieve great results, which were seen throughout Europe. That’s why the Cossacks were hired to fight in different places. They were quite respectable people. What Ukrainians can do well – in complete anarchy, in complete chaos, somehow organise themselves and achieve their goals. I hope that we will learn to do this not only at some critical moments, but also in good times. And this is probably the thought that bothers me the most.
All this support that we receive, we are immensely grateful for it, patriots, weapons, and so on. But without people, nothing will shoot or work. Therefore, the greatest goal is to unite and be united and be Ukrainians. Because even now, after the revolution and the war, there are still some people who do not fully believe in Ukraine. And I want these people either to leave the country or change their minds.
S: At the beginning of the war, many people in the whole world actively helped Ukraine and Ukrainians, as well as Ukrainian art. And at some point, it became “fashionable” to support Ukraine. Then it started to decline, and now there is less and less support. And we understand each country has its problems, but still, it is necessary to help. If you had one chance to speak in front of a huge audience of people who can and should help your country, what would you say? It’s not about asking for money, it’s about giving them motivation to continue helping Ukraine and Ukrainians in the future.
B: Well, actually, I also thought about it. In general, this war is not just a war between Russia and Ukraine. Some call it a war of good and evil. This is a real war of different regimes, different social norms. And this is a war for the future. And if you choose the future of autocracy, dictatorship, where a person stands above the law, and you just want to exist in such a society, then, of course, do not help, do not look in our direction. Just do your own business and live your life.
But if you want to achieve, to some extent, real globalisation, real peace in the whole world, then you must help. Because this is a war for the future. This is a war for what the world will be like shortly, and what it will be like in the distant future. And if you want, as the next set,p to fly between planets in space and think about how humanity should develop, how humanity should improve life on our planet, then I think you should help Ukraine. For me, it is so obvious. I do not understand those people who still choose other sides.
For me, there is no Russia or Ukraine. I say here, for me, there is a clear future, the future that I want and strive for. And I also try to slightly push all people who are close to me in that direction. If people have different thoughts, maybe I am wrong. Maybe, they prefer another path. But based on what is happening in the world, in my opinion, again, the choice is obvious.
S: What helps you to move forward in these difficult times? So, you get up, and what helps you keep doing what you do? What is your motivation? Energy, where does it come from?
B: Well, in general, it seems to me that for a man it is very important to start the morning with victories, with victory over oneself, over one’s work, over what you are doing at the moment. To feel well, you must live in balance. You must care about yourself, your family, and your business. You should do it as good as possible, and for this, everything should be in balance. I support myself by starting the morning early. For me, this is already the first victory, to get up in the morning. The second victory is to do something for yourself, to do various physical exercises, spiritual exercises that help me concentrate and find answers to some questions. And after that, doing your main work is much easier, and you feel much more inspired to do it. And then by the end of the day, it is your family, where you can come, relax and find a certain Zen there. And when everything is in balance, when you get enough sleep, when you start the day with victories, when you then transfer all the victories onto your work and then, relax with your family, then you have enough energy and strength to wake up and start a new day. Something like that.
Yuriy Myrko
Yuriy: My name is Myrko Yuriy. I am a ceramic artist and sculptor. And currently I live and work in Kyiv.
Sofia: Where were you born, and when did you create your first artwork?
Yuriy: I was born in the village of Opishnya, Poltava region, Ukraine.
And I started creating my first artworks in 2001, after school graduation.
Sofia: And what was that?
Y: It was some kind of pottery made on a pottery wheel. I don’t remember, it seems that there were some pots.
S: And how did you start to work with ceramics, making pottery in general? Where did you get all this from?
Y: The village where I was born and raised is famous as the capital of Ukrainian pottery, Opishnya. It’s quite well-known in Ukraine, and in the past, in the Soviet Union, it was quite famous as a centre of pottery too. And even before the Soviet Union, it was known because there were always a lot of craftsmen there, and there was a lot of clay was used for this craft.
Why did I start doing this? It’s a long story. When I was growing up, I could not imagine that I would be engaged in ceramics, that I would be an artist, that I would make sculpture. I was just a simple village boy, playing football, fishing, just having fun, helping my parents. But I remember that I always had a talent for drawing. I had drawing skills since childhood. And when the question arose about what I should do after graduation, I had several options.
For example, I thought about studying the exact sciences because I was very good at mathematics and the exact sciences. But my father, being a responsible man, took it quite seriously. He asked me what I wanted to do. I said I didn’t know what I was going to do. At that time, he was working as a chief engineer at the art ceramics factory in Opishnya, which was still operating. And he saw that I was skilled in moulding with clay. I used to make all sorts of toys out of plasticine (playdough). He asked me if I wanted to enter an art university in Poltava. A department of Decorative and Applied Arts had recently opened at Poltava Technical University.
And he had friends there who could help me enter the university. In general, there were certain acquaintances there. And I was interested in this offer, but I couldn’t enter right away because the university is at a pretty serious level. People enter it after graduating from art schools or colleges. And I didn’t have any artistic education. I just painted at home.
And so, I had to prepare myself for a whole year. And for a whole year, I attended the courses in Poltava, it was about 50 kilometres away from Opishnya. I was going there twice a week. And in order not to waste time, I worked for a whole year as an apprentice at an art ceramics factory.
And I remember on my first working days there, I was shown how to work on a pottery wheel with clay. And when I tried it, I did very well the first time. And I liked it. And I remember that this year was quite inspiring for me. I wanted to go to work, I wanted to work. I didn’t want to go home, I always wanted to work with clay. And the level I demonstrated while studying was very high, and I learned fast. That is, in three months, I learnt how to make artworks that were made by masters of the highest sixth category at that time. And I was quite good at it.
And then I entered the university, a year later. And there, I started to study other art. I started painting and sculpting. At the university, I never stopped doing ceramics. I did it at the university, I did it during the summer holidays at home, where I had a workshop. But I also painted a lot, because I also liked this kind of art. I even wanted to continue my studies at the Lviv Academy of Arts in order to study painting.
But my father was against it. And he convinced me that it was better for me to do what I was doing and continue to study where I was studying. And I listened to him and left those ideas behind. I continued my studies at Poltava University. But I still did more painting when I was at university. And when I graduated from university and became a freelance artist, I continued painting for another year, and then I realised that I had to do what I was best at. And around 2008, I started thinking more seriously about developing in ceramics. And then everything developed gradually.
S: You have quite unusual artworks, not like the others. Most people, all over the world, who are exhibiting ceramics now, they are very similar ones. You have quite unusual, surreal and complex artworks. Where do you get these forms? Where do you get this inspiration? The forms are quite complex for ceramics.
Y: In the first years of my career in ceramics, I spent more time studying the craft itself. I made some simple forms, some dishes, and some vases. And I was gaining the skill of working with clay. I studied the material itself. But later, I also became quite seriously interested in and started practising spiritual practices. And I realised that with the help of my art, I could preach, show people deeper truths, that art is a pretty good tool for preaching. And I realised that art is something that should uplift and glorify a person. And I became interested in not just making some decorative things, but creating sculptures, objects that would carry a deep philosophical thought. And that would make people think. And at the beginning, I tried to think up artificially what I wanted to do, and developed some ideas. But over time, I let my imagination free and trusted the Lord, some higher power.
And I’m just trying to feel what I need to do. What I need to convey and what I need to give away. Because I have a lot to say to people to make their lives better. There is a lot of knowledge that I have collected, a lot of knowledge that I have heard, learnt, and received from other people. And I want to pass it on. Because when you are full of something, you want to share it.
And that’s why these sculptures, these forms, may seem complex to some extent. But they are only complex until we understand what they are about. And when the viewer understands what they are about, they become easy. Because they solve certain issues of a person, answer their questions, and help make life easier. And the forms themselves are often a kind of interaction between some creative thought and the material. I need to pay great attention to what the material I am working with dictates. And clay is a very lively and interesting material. And if you listen to it, if you interact with it, it tells you a lot. Just like wood, for example.
Because recently I’ve also started working with wood. They are also very similar. And if you do not focus on what you specifically want, but listen to what the environment, the material, everything around you tells you, then the forms are born by themselves. And sometimes I’m surprised by what I create. Quite often, I even make some sculptures and then think about what they are about. And I discovered some ideas for myself. Well, that’s it in a nutshell.
S: Where would you like to see your artworks, for example, in world-famous museums? What is your dream?
Y: I would like my work to be very accessible to many people. And if they are exhibited in different world museums, I will be only for it. But I also dream of creating my sculpture park. Where I would either display only my artworks, or I would select works that are similar in spirit, so that they would be in the same spirit. So that a person would enter the park, and this atmosphere would be condensed in one style, in one spirit. So that a person would come to a sculpture exhibition as if it were some kind of…not just an entertaining event, but to learn something, to understand something, to see something, to think about something. And that’s why I would like to create a kind of a large museum of exhibits, or a park. Well, I dream of a sculpture park.
But if there were such an opportunity, I would gladly bring these sculptures somewhere, I would exhibit them at all kinds of famous museums. Because the way people’s minds work is the following: if you take your artworks and exhibit them somewhere, people will also later come to you. But when you exhibit only here, no one knows about you, so no one respects you much. As if you just made something of clay for yourself.
Well, the human mind works in such a way that unless you have some kind of big advertising, you are not taken seriously. No matter how deep you are, no matter what level of sculpture you have. So, I think if I have an opportunity to exhibit somewhere in a serious museum, it will be good for my development and the popularisation of my art. And it will be an opportunity for me to express what I want to express in my artworks to wider audiences.
S: In the background, there are your works, which evoke a lot of emotions. What are these sculptures about?
Y: This is an exhibition and we plan to open it quite soon. And this series of sculptures is called “Emptiness”. It’s a continuation of a series of sculptures that are currently on display at Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, called “Shadows”. There are eight sculptures that symbolise certain problems that people face and suffer from. They raise the question of why people suffer.
It is logical if we show the reasons for people’s suffering, and it is logical to find an answer, to give an answer. It’s not good just to point out that you’re suffering because you’re such a scoundrel. And if you take on this, you have to say that you are suffering, but you have a choice, you can do this and you won’t suffer. And this series of works, these eight artworks, is about the way out, about what I propose. And I propose to base on certain knowledge, certain spiritual practices, and I offer what I am trying to implement and practice. Because to propose or talk about something that you haven’t learnt or don’t practice yourself is quite wrong. And this series of sculptures, these eight sculptures, symbolically describes the progress of a person on the spiritual path. They symbolically show how the mood and silhouette of a person’s image changes when he starts from a certain state of sleep, when he is in complete ignorance, does not understand who he I,s and just sleeps, to a certain exalted state when he finds himself and understands what he needs to do. And this person restores their connection with the higher powers, restores their connection with God. I can briefly describe the first and last sculptures.
The first sculpture represents a person who is sleeping. It is said in the Holy Scriptures that if a person does not engage in self-development, doesn’t search for connection with God, then he or she is identified with a sleeping person. It is just a dream, as if it were a dream. And when a person awakens, and, by the way, it was the working title of that series, “Awakening”, but then I changed it to “Emptiness”, then he begins his journey.
And in the end, the last work, it symbolises a figure who gives God everything he has. That is, it gives God everything precious, gives all of itself, and only then it become truly happy. Each sculpture also has a hollow in the chest area. And it symbolises the fact that each of us feels that there is some kind of emptiness in our hearts that cannot be filled with anything material. We try to close it with some things, with a bunch of friends, material love, but in the end, we are mostly disappointed. The farther we are from the connection with God, with the Divine, the greater this emptiness is.
And gradually, in each sculpture, this emptiness decreases, and this hollow gets smaller. And only in the last sculpture it disappear. There’s an interesting poem, I don’t remember the name of the poet, she’s from Georgia, a poem on this very topic. At the end of this poem, she says that “the emptiness in the heart is the size of God”. It means that this emptiness can only be removed with God’s help. Because this emptiness is precisely due to the lack of God in the heart. And when this connection with God is restored in our lives, God fills this emptiness. And then we calm down and begin to live fully.
I can tell a lot about each sculpture, about each stage, but it could take a whole film, because there is a lot to tell about each sculpture. In short, it’s about the spiritual path. And some of the sculptures have such torn heads. And one can say that it happened by chance, but it’s not accidental. Because this spiritual path is very difficult. Even just the material path, leading to some kind of peak, is also very difficult. And the spiritual path is even more difficult, because the goal is very high, the goal is beyond our reality. And only a few people can reach the end of this path in one lifetime. That’s why many people stop at different stages.
And these torn sculptures, to some extent, symbolise the complexity of this path and the complexity of life in general. And especially now, for example, in Ukraine, everyone understands how difficult life is in general. Although it’s not about that, not about material difficulties, not about the fact that your head or leg can be torn off at any second. Nevertheless, it resonates to some extent. That is, people are becoming more aware that material life is not so simple and quite deceitful. You can hope, for example, that your country, your family, your husband, your parents, will protect you. And in one second, all this can be gone, and you will have nothing. And even you may be gone. Or you may have no arms or legs.
And then a person realises that nothing material can protect them. And then he starts to think about who he is and what he is. And whether he/she can be happy with material happiness, material things, material life. And this series of sculptures is the purpose is to make people think about this and start thinking about their lives. And to think about who I am, what I am and why I live here.
S: You’re rather a religious person. Do you think you would be better appreciated as an artist if you lived in the West and not in Ukraine?
Y: I don’t think it would have any influence. I mean, I believe that we get exactly what we are supposed to get. And there is such a book, “Isha Upanishad”. It says that everyone is given a part of their destiny. And you should not trench on the destiny of another. And this mantra is always in my mind; it allows me to be creative, to be alive. Because when we think that we can snatch a piece somewhere, earn more than we want, it makes us slaves to it. Slaves to our desires to become rich and famous. But if we understand that we only get what we are supposed to get, then we calm down at first and then start doing what we want to do. And it is this truth that helps me to work creatively.
And it helps me not to stop at what I have achieved. Because the biggest danger for an artist or a ceramist is when you have learnt to make something, it has some popularity, people buy it, then you stop there, and that’s it. And that will be your degradation, this is the beginning of degradation.
And if you understand that this also makes you bored, I am bored, so my success is that I am always interested in doing something new, and this helps me find new forms, new ideas, and new things. And anyone who observes me, for example, my work, how it has changed over the past six years… That is, from the period when I was making just some cups, and now I create sculptures, and mostly only sculptures. And now we have a brand called Gorn Ceramics, and there are craftsmen whom I teach, and they make some household items, some decor (gornceramics.com/en).
But I don’t do it myself, even though I can do it very well and very quickly, and it is in demand; people like it. But I don’t want to do it because I feel degraded by it. I mean, I feel that I can do more, but I’m doing something small. The same as, for example, if we have some kind of, I don’t know, iPhone, and we just use it to stir potatoes or use it like a hammer. So if we can do more, we should use our talent. Because, in my opinion, talent, when we are given a talent, is a certain responsibility.
And you need to justify it, you need to use it in some way, to do something good with its help and make the world a better place. And that is why I always try to develop myself and don’t stop at anything. I am always looking for something new.
And I think that all my artworks that I’m creating now are a kind of preparation. Maybe someday I’ll create something worthy that will be worth some attention. Or maybe not. And I don’t rule out the possibility that I might abruptly stop my work and do something completely different if I feel that it’s necessary, that it will be more useful.
Because if a person develops more broadly, then maybe over time he/she need to think more broadly and expand his/her activities. That’s all about it. Thank you.
